The Day My Husband Left- Book Review

 The Day My Husband Left by Amy Miller

Publication Date: 21st Jan 2021
Genre: Women’s Fictions, Family Drama

3.5 Stars

 

Heidi and Johnny are a 50-something couple with two daughters, an upholstery restoration business, and a dark secret neither of them talks about. Johnny suffers his second heart attract a year after his first one and passes away.

The family is grieving, trying hard to cope up with the loss when Heidi finds a picture in Johnny’s phone. Her instincts tell her that she needs to find out about the picture. After much hesitation, she does and finds out something that could change her family forever.

The book starts with Johnny’s death and continues to tell us what and how things change. Will the family bonds survive, or will everything fall apart forever?

The cover picture drew me in, and the premise sounded like a wonderful read. The book started out well, and then, sigh! I just couldn’t connect with it. The characters individually were cool. They had their identities, quirks, vulnerabilities, and strengths. Zoe was an absolute favorite. They did well together too. So what’s the issue?

For me, it was the limited third-person POV that rested on Heidi’s shoulders. She was grieving, trying to handle her present and past while keeping her business afloat. She was supposed to have all of my attention. But she didn’t.

The story had too much 'tell'. The setting was 'showed' to the reader, but the emotions were told. Yes, there were a lot of gut-wrenching scenes and heartbreaking emotions. Yet, none of them reached me. In short, it was like having a transparent screen between me and the overwhelming experiences of the characters. The writing did not break through this barrier and come to me.

Maybe if the viewpoints altered between the main characters, I would have been able to see things from their side and know them for who they are. Despite being a third-person narration, I only see what Heidi sees. And it looked like she couldn’t connect with any of the other characters. Sure, they shared a good bond. It just wasn’t enough for me.

Some of the dialogues were powerful. All of them belonged to other characters. Another issue with the book was that too much happened in succession, and when we come towards the end, it’s more or less sorted out. Again, without Heidi’s involvement. She is probably the weakest character of the book. I understand the reason to show her vulnerable side, she was grieving after all, and she had to be real. People make mistakes. Wrong decisions are a part of our lives. That’s always acceptable. But here, in the book, it didn’t feel real.

However, that’s just me. I know readers who would love and devour the book. I hope they read and enjoy it (especially the ending).

Overall, not everyone is going to love this book, but they will remember some of the characters.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and Bookouture.

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